


Eurydice

by RukiaG



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Because it's been over a month and I'm still bitter about that ending, Bittersweet, F/M, Post-Canon Fix-It, bringing characters back to life isn't easy, can be read as either romantic or platonic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 18:45:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17452379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RukiaG/pseuds/RukiaG
Summary: Allura died to save all realities, but that doesn't mean Shiro is going to give up and not try to bring her back.Even if it costs him his life.





	Eurydice

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve poured all the anger and frustration I feel about season 8 into this story, and I haven’t even finished watching it yet. I want to, but every time I think about it I get mad and sad :(

Allura, princess of Altea, died to save all realities.

She was acclaimed as a hero, her sacrifice praised by those who knew what happened, her effigy immortalized in statues all over the universe, from the newly restored Altea to Earth, her memory cherished and mourned by her closest friends.

It had been a month since Allura’s sacrifice, and the team hadn’t been the same after that. She had been the heart of Voltron, after all, and her absence had left a bleeding hole in their chests.

Coran left juniberries on her statue every day, weary and silent in a way so different to his previous cheerful self, shoulders hunched as if he had aged a thousand years. Both Lance and Keith avoided the team, the first isolating himself in a farm, the second going to missions with the Blade. Hunk and Pidge plunged themselves into their own works, Hunk barely leaving the kitchen, and Pidge keeping herself busy in her workshop, both trying to bury their grieve with manual work. And Shiro…

Shiro spent the nights looking at the sky. The light of the stars seemed duller without Allura, his white hair and his new arm had become painful reminders of everything she’d done for him, and how he had failed to save her.

And so, one night, Shiro left his quarters on the Atlas and headed towards the Black Lion’s hangar. The universe was entering a period of cautious peace, and Voltron wasn’t needed anymore, but there was still one last mission to accomplish. However, Shiro didn’t wake up the rest of the team. They had already risked too much, and what he was about to do could get them killed.

Shiro rested his flesh hand on Black’s jaw. The metal was warm, and he heard the Lion purr, a soft rumble on the back of his head. At first, he hadn’t dared to fly Black after coming back to life, the memory of dying on the cockpit too fresh to bear, and then he became the captain of the Atlas and the team seemed used to the new lions, so he convinced himself that the current status quo was okay. But now…

“I need one last favour from you, old friend.”

The Black Lion rumbled and opened its jaws, beckoning Shiro inside.

It felt like home, Shiro thought, as Black took off. He made a few spins in the air, relishing on the feeling of limitless freedom that flying the Lion gave him, faster and more manoeuvrable than anything Earth technology had ever accomplished. With a roar, the Black Lion flew into deep space.

Soon the solar system was left behind, and Shiro took a deep breath, closing his eyes. Now was the moment of truth. He could either succeed, fail, or die trying, and death didn’t scare him anymore. Been there, done that.

He remembered that first day of training, so long ago, and the nosedive exercise. His grip on the controls tightened as he saw the universe through the Lion’s eyes.

He remembered the final battle with Zarkon, and the rush of energy as Black passed through the robeast and Shiro snatched the Black Bayard form the emperor’s hand. The Lion speeded up.

He remembered the astral plane, the endless emptiness inside of Voltron, and the bright space between realities. The sad smile on Allura’s lips when they saw her for the last time. The Black Lion roared, wings glowing, spread wide open as it pierced through the fabric of reality, and in a flash of white light, it disappeared.

Shiro blinked, the golden brightness too strong through the Lion’s eyes. The quintessence field shimmered around him, specks and swirls of white light breaking the solid yellow of pure life energy.

“Alright, where should we start searching?”

Black rumbled, the growl echoing through the golden void… Wait, that wasn’t an echo. Something growled back at Black from within the quintessence field.

Shiro drove the Lion towards the sound. Soon he saw two points of blue light among the yellow, and suddenly, the White Lion leapt in front of Black, jaws open in a defiant roar. Shiro’s breath caught in his throat, but before he could react, the White Lion turned around and ran into the void, looking back one last time right into Shiro’s eyes.

“Seems we’ve got a guide.” He muttered, and Black quickly followed the other lion.

Time flows in a strange way in the void between realities, so Shiro couldn't tell for how long he followed the White Lion. However, he did notice when the light became muddier, the bright golden fading into a dirty yellow as dark shadows lurked in the corners of his vision.

Deeper, deeper into the void, the quintessence corrupted by an unknown force, shimmering in a tainted, purple glow, Shiro knew he was not alone.

And then, in the middle of that darkness, a dot of light shone.

Shiro wasted no time in driving Black towards that lonely light. The White Lion ran at his side.

The light took the shape of a woman. Allura. Shiro knew it was her. She was so close… Just a little closer, and Black would be able catch her.

Something tackled the Black Lion, the force of the impact almost throwing Shiro out of his seat. He groaned, sitting up on his seat as dark creatures flooded his line of sight. They were swarming around Allura’s unconscious body, a mass of shapeless beings that made any advance impossible.

“Allura!” Shiro yelled. He was so close, he wasn’t leaving that place without her. He pushed the controls, and Black shot an energy beam at the creatures. The White Lion pounced on them, biting and slashing at the dark beings with its claws, but there were too many. Shiro groaned. He needed an opening, just a few ticks to reach Allura. “Get out of my way!”

Among the chaos, among the dark creatures surrounding him, Shiro glimpsed a new shape, a dim figure that held Allura in its arms and ran towards him, if running is even possible in a void. A creature tried to attack them, but the figure slayed it with a flash of purple light. The White Lion leapt forward and escorted the person who held Allura, biting and slashing the dark creatures, until both were close enough to the Black Lion. Then, Black caught them in its jaws, and Shiro immediately made the Lion turn around and fly as fast as it could.

“We have to leave those creatures behind before we go back to our reality!” Shiro said, and he heard Black rumble in agreement. _Don’t worry_ , it seemed to say, _go to her_. Outside, the White Lion ran behind them, occasionally fending off the creatures that came too close.

Shiro bolted out of the cockpit. He needed to check if Allura was okay. And who that stranger who saved her was.

He arrived at the room formed by the Lion’s jaws, and the first thing he saw was a man clad in a familiar white and black armour, checking Allura’s heartbeat.

“She’s alive, but barely.” The man said, not even looking up from her.

“You!” Shiro raised his fists, ready to fight. The man took a deep breath and stood up slowly, hands in front of him as if to appease Shiro.

For the first time, Shiro was able to look at his clone face to face.

“Please, I’m not here to hurt you.”

“You almost killed my team!” Shiro’s jaw clenched, blood boiling with the memory of his friends’ screams as the clone attacked them and kidnapped Lotor, and the hopeless frustration he felt when he had to watch from Black’s void as Keith was almost murdered by someone who looked like him.

The clone stepped back, averting his gaze.

“I’m sorry. The witch…” He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and looked at Shiro. “I understand your anger, but now we should focus on helping Allura.”

The clone was right, Shiro couldn’t deny it. He shot the clone a glare that promised a quick death if he dared to move a single finger, and Shiro kneelt at Allura’s side.

He rested two flesh fingers on her neck and the metal palm under her nose. He felt a faint heartbeat, and the softest breath fogged the metal of his right hand. Shiro lifted her in his arms.

“I brought a cryopod. Help me get Allura into it.”

The clone walked in front of them, and Shiro kept a watchful eye on him as he opened the cryopod and Shiro put Allura into it. Once he made sure the healing process had started, Shiro glared at his clone.

“What are you doing here?”

The clone arched an eyebrow.

“I died, remember?” Shiro’s frown deepened and the clone sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t know, the last thing I remember is Keith in front of me, with a sword in each hand. Then I passed out, and when I woke up, I was in this void.”

It’s not as if Shiro wasn’t familiar with that feeling. He had died too, but his soul had ended up in Black’s inner astral plane. He wondered if that was what quintessence really was, the remains of souls of those who died across the infinite realities of the multiverse. But still…

“That doesn’t explain how you avoided the dark creatures, or how you knew I was here.”

“I… I felt it, okay?” The clone pinched the bridge of his nose. “I felt Black entering the void. I don’t know how long I’ve been there, but I’ve been avoiding the dark zone, so when I felt Black there, I followed its essence. I saw you guys fight the creatures, and Allura was there, and…” He clenched his jaw. “I had to help her.”

Shiro’s mistrust faltered. He recognized that look, that desire of helping that had made Black give in and let the clone pilot it while Keith was gone. He still couldn’t trust the clone, but Shiro had to admit that there was more of himself in the clone that Shiro had thought at first.

Suddenly, Black reeled. Both Shiro and his clone staggered, and they ran towards the cockpit. The dark creatures had reached them. Shiro sat down and grabbed the controls. The jawblade materialized and Black sliced through the creatures.

“We need to shake them off or they won’t allow us to leave the void! The White Lion is fighting them too, but I don’t know if it’ll be enough distraction!” Shiro cursed to himself. Maybe he should have brought the rest of the team. It would have been easier to leave the void with Voltron.

The door of the cockpit swished open. Shiro looked over his shoulder in time to see his clone about to leave.

“Where are you going?!”

“I’m going to help the White Lion. We’ll buy you enough time to leave with Allura.”

“WHAT?!” Shiro was so surprised, a creature almost hit them. He made Black shoot it a laser beam. “I’m not leaving you here! Besides, you can’t fight those creatures by yourself! You’ll die!”

“Did you forget? I’m already dead.” Shiro swallowed a curse. He knew that, but what would happen if the clone’s soul was destroyed? As if sensing Shiro’s doubts, the clone added: “I’m just a soul now, if I leave the void, I’ll disappear. Just… Just tell the team that I’m sorry.” Something in the clone’s voice made Shiro forget about the battle and turn around. He could see the tears shimmering in the clone’s eyes. “Tell them that I’m glad I could be a paladin one last time.”

The clone left the cockpit, and Shiro couldn’t stop him. The dark creatures kept attacking them, and he had to focus on the fight.

Shiro saw the clone use his jetpack to fly towards the dark creatures, right hand glowing, attracting them as the White Lion stood at his side, ready to fight. Shiro clenched his jaw, but Black rumbled, urging him to take advantage of the distraction, so he turned the Lion around and flew, faster, faster, leaving them behind. Shiro gripped the controls, a scream of frustration tearing his throat as Black’s wings glowed, and in a flash of white light, they were back in the velvety emptiness of space.

Shiro remained hunched over the controls, heart beating loudly, tears about to roll down his cheeks. For a long time, he hadn’t think of his clone as anything but Haggar’s puppet, but meeting him face to face had forced Shiro to realize how unfair he’d been to the clone, and now… Now the clone was gone, forever, and he didn’t even have a name of his own to be remembered.

Black purred, soft and compassionate. Shiro straightened his back.

“Bring us back.”

The Lion rumbled and Shiro stood up. He needed to make sure Allura was okay.

The cryopod showed that she was stable, but she hadn’t woken up. Shiro opened it and leant forward. Her chest rose and fell to the rhythm of her breathing.

“Allura?” His flesh fingers brushed her cheek. Her skin was cold, but the pink marks let out the faintest warmth. Shiro waited with bated breath…

…And her eyes flickered open.

“Shiro?” Allura gazed at him with bleary eyes. Shiro smiled, pure relief filling his heart. “What…? What happened? The realities…”

“Its okay. The universe is stable now. You did it Allura. You saved us all.”

The corners of her mouth lifted in an exhausted smile.

“You found me.”

Shiro let out a laugh, some of the tension built in his heart over the past month finally disappearing.

“It was the least I could do. You brought me back to life first.”

Her smile widened, but there was still tiredness in her eyes. Shiro leant forward, placing a soft kiss on her forehead.

“Rest. We’re coming back home.”


End file.
